Chapter 153: Warning

Besides Huo Qianqiu, there were three other great cultivators at the late Foundation Establishment stage.

"That old man in the soap-colored robe to the north is Yan Xiaotian of Giant Python Island; he is a long-famous late Foundation Establishment cultivator from the spiritual energy Archipelago."

"That short old man to the west is Liu Wanzhou of the Liu family from Yellow Lingdao; he is a newly promoted late Foundation Establishment cultivator, yet his strength is extremely formidable, and it is said that immediately after breaking through, he defeated a fellow late-stage cultivator of the same rank."

"Additionally, that middle-aged man in the green robe to the east is Yu Hong from Tianlan River; he is a second-rank mid-grade grand master of the Dao of Arrays."

Aunt Long gave Qin Ming a detailed introduction to these several profound late Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Subsequently, a flowing figure descended into the center of the square.

A voice loud as a great bell rang out with extreme clarity beside everyone's ears.

"Welcome, fellow Daoists, for honoring us with your presence at Qianye Lingdao to attend this Lingdao Trading Fair."

"I am Nie Aoshan; I will not speak unnecessary words, and I hereby declare the trading fair officially open!"

"Over the next seven days, aside from trade between the various islands, the central main venue will auction off some rare items from Qianye Lingdao each day; interested Daoists are welcome to participate."

"Very well, I will say no more; I hope that all of you will gain something from this trading fair."

"Next, we begin the auction of the first batch of items for today."

Qin Ming gazed at the central venue, and his pupils could not help but constrict.

Nie Aoshan's cultivation had reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage, making him the person with the highest cultivation present; the moment he appeared, he emitted a powerful spiritual pressure that awed everyone in the entire hall.

"Besides Nie Aoshan, the Nie family also has a False Golden Core elder supreme, but generally, they would not show themselves at such occasions," Aunt Long explained to Qin Ming via voice transmission.

Qin Ming nodded slightly, thinking to himself.

'It seems that the Nie family's ability to replace the Zhao family and rise to power relies not only on the support of Lei Yuanzong but even more on their own powerful foundation.'

If one is not capable oneself, others cannot prop one up no matter how hard they try.

Next, over a dozen slender maids entered the venue one after another, carrying trays covered with red cloth.

Subsequently, the San Alliance, representing the Seventy-Two Islands, sent out a middle-aged cultivator who sequentially unveiled the red cloths to begin publicly displaying and auctioning the treasures.

"I will not waste time with lengthy chatter."

"Then, let us begin the bidding for the first item of this trade fair," the middle-aged cultivator said as he lifted the red cloth.

On the tray lay a yellow crystal stone emitting dense spiritual energy, and even more miraculously, wrapped inside it was a cloud-like substance.

"Second-rank top-grade spirit ore: Cold Crystal Profound Copper."

"The starting price is twenty thousand spirit stones, and each bid must increase by no less than one thousand spirit stones."

Boom! "It is actually such a rare spirit ore, and such a large piece at that!"

"Have the San Alliance and the Nie family gone mad? Are they really willing to put up such an exceptionally rare spirit material for trade?"

"Who cares? Since they are being so generous, this island lord will not stand on ceremony! I bid thirty thousand!!"

"..."

"I bid forty thousand!"

"!!!"

"Fifty thousand!"

Soon, after several rounds of fierce bidding and contention, this Cold Crystal spirit ore was sold at an extremely high price.

Even Yu Hong, a late Foundation Establishment second-rank array master, joined the bidding, suggesting that this spirit ore must be a rare material for setting up arrays.

The San Alliance and the Nie family had emulated the auction house's strategy, bringing out heavy hitters right from the start, instantly igniting the spending atmosphere among the cultivators present.

"The second item should be something that spirit planters can encounter only by chance and cannot seek out," the middle-aged man said, finishing his sentence with a smile as he glanced in Qin Ming's direction, his expression somewhat meaningful.

Then he lifted the red cloth, revealing several gray spirit seeds that looked utterly ordinary, appearing before everyone's eyes.

The cultivators present, including those several late Foundation Establishment experts, all looked at each other in bewilderment, clearly unable to identify the goods.

Some second-rank spirit planters in the venue also gazed at the spirit seeds on the tray, each remaining silent.

Yet Qin Ming recognized the origin of these spirit seeds at a single glance; his eyes immediately brightened, though he had no intention of showing off.

He merely thought to himself in surprise: 'They are actually spirit seeds of the Three-Crimson Soul-Returning Grass!'

That middle-aged host had originally intended to create suspense, certain that among the cultivators present, almost no one would recognize this object.

Perhaps only Island Lord Qin, the spirit planting grand master whose fame shook the spiritual energy Archipelago, might know a thing or two about it.

But after waiting for quite some time, he saw no reaction from Qin Ming, who, like everyone else, was looking at him with an inquiring gaze.

The middle-aged host instantly felt somewhat embarrassed and had to raise his voice to shout loudly: "Fellow Daoists! This object is precisely the spirit seeds of the third-rank low-grade spirit plant—Three-Crimson Soul-Returning Grass!"

"The mature spirit grass can protect the soul in critical moments; not only can it bring the dead back to life, but it is also a material for refining various third-rank spirit pills."

"It is said to be the primary material for refining high-grade Life-Extending Pills!"

"I need not elaborate further on its value, correct?"

"The starting price is thirty thousand spirit stones!"

As soon as the middle-aged cultivator finished speaking, some cultivators immediately began bidding.

"Thirty-five thousand spirit stones!"

"Fifty thousand spirit stones!" "..."

"Wait, do you act as if you can actually grow these, bidding so fiercely?"

"If you have the ability, just bid! Who cares whether it can be grown or not; these are spirit seeds of a third-rank spirit plant! Secure them first and worry later!"

"Sixty thousand!"

Watching the situation gradually spiral out of control, Qin Ming clicked his tongue in silent amazement.

After thinking for a moment, he said to Aunt Long beside him: "Fellow Daoist Long, please help me bid and secure this item."

"I will give you the spirit stones shortly."

Qin Ming thought for a moment; it would be safer to bid for the spirit seed in the name of Mirror Jing Xue Ge, saving much unnecessary trouble.

Aunt Long understood his thoughts and immediately nodded, saying, "No problem, Daoist Qin."

Next, after several rounds of fierce competition, Aunt Long finally secured the spirit seed of the Three-Crimson Soul-Returning Grass at the high price of seventy-five thousand spirit stones.

Qin Ming gazed at the spirit seed delivered to him, a hint of joy appearing at the corner of his mouth.

After the third-tier spirit seed was auctioned off, many other rare spiritual treasures were competitively sold at the central venue.

However, after Qin Ming secretly observed for a while, he noticed that several items had actually been purchased at high prices by some less famous spiritual island families; it seemed these were the objects of fierce contention between the San Alliance and the Nie family, who had begun their hidden contest.

Lasting a whole afternoon, the auction at the central venue finally concluded.

Yet within the valley, the trading gatherings between the various spiritual islands continued in full swing, showing not the slightest intention of wrapping up.

Night fell.

Qin Ming received the third-tier spiritual plant's spirit seed from Aunt Long and settled the payment in spirit stones.

"Congratulations, Daoist Qin, on achieving gains on the very first day," Aunt Long said with a smile blooming like a flower. "I presume Daoist Qin is quite confident in successfully cultivating this spiritual plant?"

"By then, you will surely become a third-tier Spiritual Plant Grandmaster."

Qin Ming smiled awkwardly and said, "I don't have much confidence; it was merely excitement upon seeing something desirable."

He truly hadn't expected to accomplish half of his journey's purpose on the very first day.

"Daoist Qin, I specially inquired for you; the high-grade demonic beast essence blood you need will appear on the list of items to be auctioned on the third day," Aunt Long then revealed a piece of news to him.

Qin Ming thanked her again, saying, "Many thanks, Daoist Long. When the time comes, just like today, I must ask Daoist Long to bid on my behalf."

Having said this, he took an exquisite jade bottle from his storage bag, stuffed it into Aunt Long's hand, and said, "Use this item to offset the spirit stones needed at that time; if it is insufficient, I will make up the difference."

Aunt Long opened the bottle stopper with a face full of confusion, glanced inside, and instantly an excited expression appeared on her face.

"It's actually a Face-Preserving Pill!"

Qin Ming looked at her, smiling without speaking.

He still had several Face-Preserving Pills left from when he originally refined them; eating more would be useless, so he might as well do a favor.

Whether Aunt Long handed over the Face-Preserving Pill or the spirit stones to Mirror Jing Xue Ge later was no longer his concern.

With matters settled,

Qin Ming walked out of the courtyard villa and strolled through the bustling night market within the valley.

Besides selling goods, these spiritual islands also began contacting each other to negotiate bulk trades, sign agreements, and so on.

However, all of this was discussed in detail within the courtyard villas.

"Truly lively!"

Qin Ming rarely got to feel such an atmosphere of human worldly life.

Just at this moment,

his powerful divine sense instantly detected a familiar figure spying on him nearby.

Qin Ming furrowed his brows, silently slipped into an adjacent alley, and then concealed his form to pursue.

This person was precisely the female cultivator in the black bamboo hat whom Qin Ming had encountered some days ago at the Chu Tianhe Market.

However, at this moment she was not wearing that bamboo hat, instead revealing an exquisite face.

But as he approached, he saw the woman flick her hand.

She threw out an object, which Qin Ming easily caught.

Qin Ming opened his hand to look at the item; it was a note concise yet alarming:

"Qianye Spiritual Island is about to undergo change; this place is extremely dangerous, leave quickly!"

After reading the content above, a wave of turmoil rose in Qin Ming's heart; he had already guessed who the person before him was.

The woman did not linger long either; she glanced back at Qin Ming, then flashed away, disappearing into the dark alley.

(End of Chapter)